Empathy

Jan 9

Developing Empathy

Activities

Can you think of a time—maybe during an argument with a friend or when the boy or girl you liked hurt your feelings—when you wished that someone understood how you felt? When we try to relate to what another person is going through, we’re being empathetic.

Do you think you’re an empathetic person? We're going to read 5 questions as a class. You should silently reflect whether your answer would be yes or no, with “yes” if it describes something you do or “no” if you don’t do what is described. (the 5 questions are being emailed separately, and also listed below)

1. I often think about other people's feelings.
2. I don't make fun of other people because I can imagine what it feels like to be in their shoes.
3. I listen to others about what they're going through.
4. I try to understand other people's point of view.
5. I'm aware that not everyone reacts to situations the same way I do. 

If you answered mostly “yes,” you probably do a good job of showing empathy toward other people. The statements you answered “no” to are things you could do to be more empathetic.

• One way you can try to imagine what it feels like being in someone else’s shoes is to ask yourself, “How would I feel in this situation?” How else can you try to understand how others feel?
• When you listen to others, making eye contact, not interrupting the speaker, and asking follow-up questions can show that you’re making a genuine effort to understand what they’re going through. What other behaviors might show someone that you are being an empathetic listener?
• What can you do to be more aware of other people’s feelings? For instance, when you talk to your friends, how many “you” questions do you ask compared to the number of “I” statements you make?  (Explain, or give examples...)

Now you are going to practice what you’ve learned about being empathetic. Discuss as a class or pass out character cards for pair-sharing... (emailed separately) If working in pairs, students will be completing the rest of the activity as this character, so take some time to think about how he or she would feel in the given situation.

• Pair up with a classmate (be sure your partner’s character card is different from yours; if you have the same character, you need to pair up with someone else). As your character, tell your partner about your situation. Your partner should practice being empathetic as s/he is listening to your story. Then, switch roles: practice being empathetic as your partner, as his/her character, tells you what s/he is experiencing.
• With your partner, discuss how s/he showed empathy toward you, how it made you feel and what you wish s/he had done differently. Use statements like, “I could tell you were really listening to me because you maintained eye contact with me during the entire conversation, and that made me feel like you care.”

Everyone in the class should now stand. Go around the room, sharing something you learned about practicing empathy, sitting after you share. If someone else shares your thought, sit down. Continue around the room until everyone is sitting.

As a class, discuss how you can follow the behaviors suggested to show empathy toward others.

Link for Empathy questions if you want to project it:
http://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/general/are%20you%20empathetic.pdf 



credit: http://www.tolerance.org/supplement/developing-empathy-middle-grades